Ghosts of the Past
by ilovenascar
Summary: A ghost from Jenny's past returns. Hollis/Gibbs at first, but mainly Jibbs, Tony/Other. Warning: MC adult situations. Special thanks to Julia, Alyson, & Ellie
1. Chapter 1

Fic Title: Ghosts of the Past

Author: I Love NASCAR

Fandom: NCIS

Pairing: Jibbs, brief Gibbs/Hollis, slight Tony/Other

Feedback: please

Disclaimer: The only profit I receive from this story is the feedback you provide. All creative rights to the characters belong to DB, not me. (Except Shelby & Bella which I'll take full credit for. ;) )

Summary: A ghost from the past returns.

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**Chapter 1 **

Jenny Shepherd sat in her car, watching the blonde play with the little girl in the swimming pool, watching the girl laugh as her parents splashed each other with the water. She hated to get out, hated to interrupt the obviously private family moment, but finally did, approaching the gate, hearing the dog bark, announcing her arrival.

"Jenny!" Shelby Gibbs waved from the pool, pretending to be angry when Tony DiNozzo splashed her again, laughing as she called a truce.

Jenny managed a half-smile, glad that Tony seemed to be getting over his ex-girlfriend, spending more and more time with his best friend and daughter these days. She still felt awkward around him though, knowing she could have gotten him killed on the 'mission'. Shelby seemed to understand and looked at DiNozzo, who nodded. "C'mon, Bella." He picked the little girl up, putting her on his shoulders. "Let's go get some Kool-Aid. Jenny, do you want anything?" 

The redhead shook her head. "Thank you," she said softly, almost unheard.

Shelby climbed out of the pool, wrapping a towel around her for warmth, the coolness of the pool a sharp contrast to the warmth of the day. "I didn't mean to interrupt. You looked like you were having fun."

"It was. You should try it some time." Jenny had just begun to heal from the whole Frog experience and then something, Shelby wasn't sure what, went wrong.

"Can we talk?" Jenny asked, not removing the sunglasses over her eyes.

"Sure." They moved to the porch swing, Shelby sitting on one side, Jenny on the other, Shelby's focus squarely on her friend, Jenny looking anywhere but at Shelby. "Jenny."

"I shouldn't be here. I shouldn't have come."

Shelby moved her hand on top of Jenny's. "Jen. What's going on? Are you okay?"

Jenny removed her sunglasses, allowing Shelby to see how red her eyes were. "No." She took a deep breath and slowly let it out. "Gary Davidson."

Shelby closed her eyes, finding her breath caught in her throat, squeezing Jenny's hand slightly before opening her eyes. "Jen."

"I started seeing him again. At NCIS, outside my home, in parking garages…I thought it was just stress. Then the phone calls started. No ID shown, no one on the other end, no dial tone, just nothing." Shelby nodded, holding her hand, just listening. "Today I got this." She took the piece of paper out, smoothing it out, handing it to Shelby, who read it, her eyes growing wide. "He's out. He's out of jail and no one bothered to tell me. It hasn't even been ten years."

"Have you told Jethro?" Jenny's only answer was to shake her head. "You have to tell him. And Tony. Ziva. Someone who can protect you."

"I can protect myself." Shelby looked hesitant, doubtful. "I used to be an NCIS agent. I know how to shoot. And if he comes near me, I don't intend to miss."

"Jenny, you can't do that. You have to tell Jethro. You have to. Please." She could still remember how awful the last time had been, how close they'd come to losing her. "Please."

"Okay," Jenny lied, knowing she'd never tell him. "I just…I needed to tell someone."

Shelby nodded, brushing some of her still wet hair behind her ear. "Stay. Stay the night. Don't go back to your place. We're just going to have hamburgers, watch a movie, and then you and I can stay up and talk."

Jenny sensed someone watching her and turned to see Bella standing on the other side of the patio door, watching them. "I can't."

"Then call Ziva. Go to a movie, to the mall, anything. Just…don't go home by yourself."

"I'm not going to drink," Jenny lied again, sensing that Shelby was frightened for her. "There's no reason why I can't go home. Noemi's there…I'll have Matt stay overnight. I'll be perfectly safe."

Shelby sensed she was fighting a losing battle. "Call me?"

Jenny nodded. "I will."

Tony walked outside and watched Jenny leave, sensing something very bad was happening. "Is she okay?"

Shelby shook her head. "No."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2 **

Jenny sat up in bed at three in the morning, her hand reaching for the phone, stopping herself as she remembered Jethro wasn't home. During the aftermath of the La Grenuoille mission, she'd gotten used to calling him when she couldn't sleep or when she woke up from a nightmare. He never seemed to mind, willing to talk to her until she could relax or until morning, even coming over to sit with her from time to time. More and more lately, it was almost as if they were together again. The stress, the arguing, had all taken a back burner; they could talk, even sometimes laugh, with each other again. She'd give anything to hear his voice, to be able to talk to him, not about her nightmare or about Davidson, but just talk. Even all those years ago, he had been the only thing that had gotten her through, the one who saved her life, in more ways than one.

_She was trained better, she was trained to know someone was watching her, to fight off attackers, but she was caught totally unaware when she woke up and felt someone on top of her in her bed, holding down her arms, pinning her where she couldn't move, a hand around her neck, choking her so she couldn't scream, stuffing some cloth inside her mouth, far enough that she gagged and started to cough. She couldn't scream, couldn't fight back, couldn't get away, was trapped like a caged animal. She knew what was coming and was powerless to stop it, but refused to cry, knowing it would do more harm than good. The hand around her neck let up and she heard the rip of the gown she'd been wearing, the sound of a zipper opening. Her attacker was wearing a mask so she knew that, even if she did manage to get through this, she'd never be able to tell what he looked like. She tried to focus on some minute detail, anything that might be able to help later, until she let out an involuntarily cry as she felt incredible pain and then blacked out. _

Jenny didn't even realize how bad her hand was shaking until she saw the bourbon she'd spilled. She took a sip out of the glass, trying to steady herself, trying to get the images out of her head. She wondered, at times, what would have happened if Jethro hadn't woken up that night. If it wasn't for his famous gut, if he'd waited until the next morning to check on her, if he'd called instead of driving over, she truly believed that Davidson would have killed her. As it was, she was in the hospital for a week, therapy for months. She'd never been able to return to her apartment, hadn't felt safe in Washington at all. Jethro had fixed everything, stayed by her side, moved her things to her father's townhouse where she now lived, and talked their director into transferring them to Europe after the trial. She thought she had moved on…until this. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"You didn't have to come home with me, Cynthia," Jenny said to her secretary, Cynthia Sumner.

The young woman looked at her boss, studying her. She knew Jenny had seemed off lately, but it had gotten worse. She was sure Jenny was no longer sleeping, not to mention the fact that she was drinking again. She never anticipated wishing Gibbs was in Washington, but his vacation had come at the absolutely worst time, as far as Jenny was concerned. "I'll stay, for awhile. Make sure you don't need anything." 

Jenny took a deep breath and slowly let it out, watching as Matt went from room to room, checking to make sure nothing was disturbed, but she had a bad feeling that something was wrong, something that was confirmed when Matt returned too quickly to have checked the entire house. "Director, Cynthia, I'm going to need you to go in the study and stay there until I say to come out."

Cynthia frowned, knowing that his instructions weren't protocol. After Jenny's last bodyguard had been killed, Gibbs had been instrumental in the handpicking of her new guard, a tough, protective ex-Marine he knew he could depend on, one that answered to Gibbs as well or even better than he did the director. "What's wrong?"

Jenny moved past Matt, going in the direction the man had come, towards her bedroom. The bed was made, not unusual in itself had it not been Noemi's day off, and rose petals were strewn on top of it. Candles were lit and placed around the room, the CD player was piping quiet jazz in the background, and a gift basket of some sort was sitting on the dresser.

"Jenny?" Cynthia asked, seeing her friend turn a whiter shade of pale, managing to stand, but just barely.

Matt moved both women back to Jenny's study and Cynthia dialed a number she knew almost by heart, watching her boss, not sure what was going on, but more than a little frightened herself.

Shelby had had no intention on coming in on a Saturday, even for half a day, but she wanted to get more information on Davidson's release. It was one thing to hear about short sentences for rapists, but quite another to see the effects of it. She still remembered the case that had put Jenny in harm's way, going undercover as bait for a rapist that had been attacking female Marines in the D.C. area. Her brother hadn't liked the idea at all and been happy when the director had decided to scrap the mission, go at the investigation in a different direction. They had assumed Davidson hadn't taken the bait, so Jenny had been alone, vulnerable, unprotected, just like his other victims.

"Damn," Shelby said, her cell phone startling her. "Hello."

" Shelby." Cynthia was relieved to hear her voice. If she couldn't reach Gibbs, Shelby was the second best choice, both to know what was going on and to take care of Jenny.

"Cynthia. What's wrong?" She sensed that the assistant wasn't calling to make an appointment for lunch.

"She was running on empty, so Matt and I brought her home. I think someone broke in…Her bedroom is all set up, there's roses on the bed, candles, music, it's some sort of…"

Shelby interrupted quickly. "Where is she? Is she okay? Where's Matt?"

"She's here with me. We're in the study. She's shaky, pale, but she's not hurt. Matt's checking the rest of the house."

"I've got to make some phone calls, but I'm leaving right now," she said, reaching for the gun she kept locked in her desk drawer. "Keep her away from the bedroom and stay…"

"I'm not leaving her until you get here. Just…hurry."

Shelby hung up, putting the gun in her purse, barely looking up when the door opened. "Teriyaki…" Tony started, stopping when he saw the look on her face. " Shelby? What's wrong?"

"It's Jenny."

He frowned. "Is it about last night?" Shelby hadn't told him what the two of them had discussed, but she never had really gotten back in a good mood after Jenny's visit.

She nodded, her blue eyes connecting with his own. "Come with me." He nodded, not really questioning her, just hurrying to the elevator with her, going along for the ride.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Jethro Gibbs stood on the porch of the rented cabin with his coffee, looking out towards the lake, staring out into oblivion. There were only three women he'd ever went fishing with that he'd enjoyed the trip: one had been Shannon, when they used to take Kelly, one had been Jenny, not so much for the fishing as the escape from civilization, and the third was his sister. This trip was no exception. Hollis hadn't been squeamish about any of it, but he knew the true purpose of the trip, to talk about their relationship. The truth was that Hollis was getting more and more involved as opposed to him looking more and more for an escape hatch. He wasn't happy, hadn't been for awhile, but she'd started becoming upset if he spent time with another woman, on or off the clock, whether it be Shelby, Abby, Ziva, or Jen, especially Jen. The case with Stephanie had been the breaking point and he wished Ducky hadn't said anything at all to Hollis about Shannon and Kelly. She'd started talking about settling down, about children, and on a timeline. The truth was, there was only one woman he'd ever been able to imagine that type of life with, besides Shannon, and since he'd come on this trip, he'd gotten a gut feeling that something was wrong with Jenny, that he needed to go home.

His cell phone vibrated and he answered quickly, knowing Hollis would be angry if she knew he had it with him, much less on, but he'd wanted to be reachable. "Gibbs."

"Okay, it's time to stop playing house and come home," Shelby said, forgoing a greeting, a tone to her voice that he recognized well.

"Why's that?" He knew she didn't like Hollis and, at first, he'd thought that it was because she still thought there was a shot in hell at him getting back together with Jen.

"The bastard broke into her house. Tony and I are on our way over there now. Matt's with her, but you have to come home. Now."

"Wait. Back up." She had his full attention now, so much so that he didn't see Hollis watching him. "Broke into whose house?"

"Jenny's. Who do you think? This is gonna kill her. You know how bad it was the last time. Cynthia said she was shaking she was so upset." Shelby's words were sincere, worried for her best friend, the woman she considered her sister.

" Shelby, you're not making any sense." He rubbed his head, getting the beginnings of a headache. "What are you talking about? What's wrong with Jenny?"

"She didn't tell you." Shelby closed her eyes, opening them again, wishing Tony would drive just a little faster although he was already speeding. "Davidson."

Gibbs' blood ran cold, his mind going back to finding Jenny on the bed, beaten to a pulp, broken and bloody. When she'd started crying, his heart had broken; it had been all he could do to keep a brave face up for her through the whole hellish ordeal. "What about him?"

Shelby's voice was quiet, almost to the point where he couldn't hear her and he had excellent hearing. "He was released."

Gibbs came close to being sick as he heard the news. He'd known it would happen one day and once again wished that he'd made that shot that day, just one shot, saved the government the expense of the trial, gotten justice for Jenny and the other victims instead of the farce that had actually happened. "I'm on my way home now," he said, not noticing that Hollis was now outside, not caring what she thought, knowing with everything inside him that he needed to get to Jenny, whatever else happened.

"Okay." Just hearing that made Shelby feel a little better. She knew she could hold down the fort until her brother got there, but the only thing that could actually fix anything would be for him to be back home. "Jethro…"

"Stay with her until I can get there." He knew he didn't have to tell her that and that she'd probably stay after he arrived as well. Jenny needed all the family she could get. "And make sure Matt or Tony are there at all times, okay?" A nightmarish scenario with Davidson getting to both the girls crossed his mind, making his resolve to return to D.C. even stronger. "Be careful, Shelby. And take care of her for me."

"I will." They hung up at the same time, Gibbs turning to face Hollis as Shelby looked over at Tony.

"You gonna tell me what's going on?" Tony asked, not sure if he was intruding or not, but Jenny's behavior the day before had concerned him, Shelby's phone call to her brother had him more than a little worried as well.

"It goes no further…"

"Than me," Tony finished for her, knowing Shelby trusted him with her secrets, but knowing she was uncomfortable about revealing any of her brother's or Jenny's, even under the circumstances.

"About ten years ago, Jenny and Jethro were investigating a string of female Marines that were…attacked."

Tony nodded, listening. "And they used her as bait."

"The op was supposed to be over. They didn't think Davidson had picked up on the bait and they were going to try another way." Shelby paused. "Turned out he was just waiting for the surveillance to go off of her."

Tony brought the car to a sudden stop at a red light, putting his hand up to help the seatbelt stop her, both falling back against the seat. "Jenny was…hurt?" The anger about the Le Grenuoille mission fell by the wayside, leaving just the concerned friend.

Shelby nodded. "He was released about a week ago. He's already been stalking her; evidently he broke into her home today."

Tony swore under his breath as he started driving again. "What about the other victims? Do they know he's out?"

Shelby looked out her window, her voice getting quiet again. "Jenny was the only survivor." Davidson hadn't been charged with murder, because there was nothing connecting him to the deaths, but every woman who'd been raped had ended up killing themselves, either by their own hand or by having death wishes. Every one of them…except Jenny.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Shelby used her key to let herself and Tony into the house, quietly greeting Matt in the hallway, Tony looking around, absorbing his surroundings. He'd been in Jenny's office at work many times, but he'd never been to her home. The whole thing was a new experience for him and he didn't really know what to expect. 

"Hey, Matt," Shelby said, looking into the study, seeing Jenny pace, her hands still shaky.

"There was no one here, but they'd obviously been here. Is Agent Gibbs…"

"He's coming home." She turned her attention back to the ex-Marine. "Was there anything besides the bedroom?"

"The bathroom had candles too, a full tub, glass of wine…" Matt paused, worried about his boss. "She hasn't said a word since we got here. I didn't touch anything, didn't know if…"

Shelby nodded. "We'll document it and then clean it up. Tony's going to stay if you want…"

He nodded, knowing the rest of her sentence. "All right, ma'am. Thank you." He took a last look in the study at Jenny and Cynthia, then left, Shelby locking the door back behind him.

" Shelby?" Tony questioned, waiting instructions.

"We're going to photograph, sketch, log, and then dismantle. If there's an investigation, I want it just the team. I don't want…" Her main concern wasn't public relations for NCIS at the moment, but the safety and sanity of her friend. They walked upstairs to Jenny's bedroom, Tony turning to look at the pictures on the hallway walls from time to time, seeing people he'd known for years in a way he'd never thought of them, Jenny, Ducky, Shelby, even Gibbs seemed to be more relaxed, happier, in the pictures that had obviously been taken off work.

Shelby stopped at the bedroom door, taking in the scene. From all aspects, it seemed like the classic seduction scene for a perfect romantic night, but that was what bothered her the most. "Tony…" She paused, turning to look at her friend. "She shouldn't stay here, should she?"

He shook his head. "You should take her out of here. I'll call Ziva and McGee; we'll clean this up."

"Jenny…" Shelby's attention was grabbed by the redhead standing in the door, taking in the room again. "Honey…"

As if on cue, the telephone rang, their attention going to the sound as Jenny knocked the basket off the dresser, knocking a candle over, burning herself and starting to cry. Once she started, she couldn't stop, standing there, crying and shaking. He put out the small fire the candle had started as Shelby hugged her friend and then just held her, knowing where they had to go, the only place Jenny would feel safe, the only place she knew she could protect her.

"Jenny." She took a handkerchief from nearby and wiped at her friend's eyes, a losing battle given the tears streaming down her face. "Jenny, let's go find Jethro, okay?" She received no answer, but didn't expect one.

Tony watched Shelby and Jenny walk out, still in shock himself. He had seen Jenny break only once before, the first night Gibbs had been in the coma, as she sat at his bedside, so absorbed in Gibbs that she hadn't even realized he'd seen her, a fact he'd never revealed.

"Can I help?" Cynthia asked, still standing in the door, having seen everything that happened. "Until the others get here?"

Tony nodded, knowing she wanted something to do, knowing she felt as helpless as the rest of them. He handed her the disposable camera Shelby had laid down. "Can you take pictures?" She nodded, beginning to work as he used his cell phone to call the rest of the team.

Gibbs knew something was wrong when he drove up to his house and saw his sister's Mustang in the drive. He almost wished he'd dropped Hollis by her apartment first, but they'd left from his house so her vehicle was still there. The drive from the lake had been silent, icy, but all he could think of was getting to Jenny. He fully expected Hollis to leave as soon as they arrived, but she surprised him by going inside with him. He opened the door and smelled fresh-brewed coffee, the best smell in the world to him right then, but didn't hear any noise revealing to him where his sister might be. He moved from room to room, seeing the door to his room partially closed, a tuft of red hair letting him know that Jenny was asleep, something he was glad for.

"No," Hollis said, turning on the basement light to the stairs as Gibbs went to get them two cups of coffee. "Absolutely not. It's one thing that we came home from our vacation early, but for her to stay here, sleep in your bed…"

"Exactly. His bed. Not yours. And she's here because she feels safe here. Oh, I forgot. You have no understanding of that word…feel, I mean," Shelby said, turning around, switching from one therapeutic moment to the other, from working on her brother's boat to finding an outlet for her rage.

Hollis made her way down the stairs. "I should have known you'd have something to do with this. I don't know what you and your little friend are planning, but I'm not giving him up…"

"You think we planned this?" Shelby asked, her blue eyes wide. "You really are a manipulative bitch, aren't you?"

Gibbs came into the basement, seeing and hearing everything. "You little shit. You're just doing this because you hate me. You've done nothing but manipulate your brother to dump me and get back with her."

"I don't hate you. I wouldn't waste my energy. I'd be fine with you if you made my brother happy. He's been through hell and deserves that much."

Hollis's eyes narrowed. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying one of us cares about my brother. And I'm that one." Hollis grabbed her arm and Jethro made a noise on the stairs, letting them know he was there before he came down.

Hollis dropped Shelby's arm and Gibbs looked at his baby sister. "Go check on Jenny for me, honey." He saw the look on Shelby's face letting him know she was furious. "Please."

She nodded. "Okay." She walked up the stairs, leaving the basement.

"Get out." Jethro's voice was even, but his eyes left no room for compromise, no room for doubt.

"Jethro, you didn't see…"

"I saw. Believe me I saw. I've seen a lot of things and I've let it slide. One thing you've never been able to understand is that my family comes first."

"Which family? Your sister and 'Jenny' or your wife and child you kept secret from me?" Her eyes blazed, ready to fight.

"Both. You're not family. I don't know what you are. But I do know you're gone." She started to say something. "Goodbye, Hollis." He watched her walk away, going upstairs to make sure there was no more fighting between her and his sister.

"What you ever saw in her I'll never understand. But then again, Diane was exactly like her."

He half-smiled for a brief second. "Tell me what's going on."

"How do you not know that Davidson's been released?" She asked, taking a sip of her coffee.

"I don't know. I'll pursue that later. I never would have left if I'd known." Shelby nodded, knowing it for the truth. "Tell me about the break-in."

She described the bedroom and bathroom for her brother and then what Jenny had done. "The team is investigating, but I figured that she'd want to keep this as quiet as possible."

"How does she not tell me this?"

"She didn't tell me about the stalking until last night. It's been hard on her. And let's just say that you haven't been the easiest person to talk to these last few weeks. Especially for Jen."

His face wrinkled slightly with concern and worry, making him look his age of fifty and then some. "How's your arm?" He asked, holding it gently in his hands, looking at it already beginning to bruise.

"It'll heal." She moved away, uncomfortable with the attention focused on her, even by him. "Tony's going to come over in about an hour. You should go see Jenny."

"How long has she been asleep?"

Shelby shook her head. "She's not asleep."

Gibbs looked at her and took the two cups of coffee he was holding to his room, nudging the door open, kneeling on the floor next to the bed so that he could meet her green eyes, now red, filled with tears she was still crying. "I brought you some coffee."

"You're home." Although she'd heard Shelby tell her several times that he was coming, she never really connected the words with him being there until he was inches away, within touch.

He nodded. "I'm home, Jen." He took a chance and carefully brushed some of the tears away from her cheeks, surprised when she put her hand over his, holding his hand to her face. She scooted back slightly, giving him enough room to sit by her, letting him rub her back in soft, small circles. "You want to talk about it?" He realized he'd chosen the wrong word when she shook her head no. "You need to."

She nodded. "I know." She paused. "I'm scared, Jethro."

He nodded, knowing the feeling very well. He was frightened himself, for her, for what could have happened and for what she was going through might do to her. "I know you are, Jen. But I won't let anything happen. I promise." She nodded, believing him, for the first time in a week feeling safe.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

_His famous gut was on overload, a horrible sinking feeling about Jenny. The recent events had been bad enough, but this was more. He snuck away from work early, going home, the feeling getting worse and worse every moment, almost like the night Jenny had been raped or when Shannon and Kelly had been killed. With that realization in his mind, he drove even faster, hoping, no, praying that he was overreacting, that his senses were on overdrive because of everything that had been going wrong. He left the door to the car open, as well as the door to the house, running inside, calling, almost screaming, her name, still desperate to believe it was all his imagination, but with every second turning into minutes and still no answer, he became frightened. When he reached the bedroom, saw the bottle of pills and alcohol, Jenny passed out on the bed, that fear turned into full-blown panic._

Gibbs shivered at the secret memory that, all these years later, only four people knew. He didn't know how they'd kept it low-key, other than Ducky calling in favors, but he was glad they had. That one night had changed everything as far as he was concerned. After Shannon died, he'd built up walls, convinced himself not to fall that in love with anyone, which, in hindsight, might have been more than a small factor in his divorces. With Jenny, after that night, there was no denying what she was to him, what she meant to him, and he'd done everything in his power to protect her, even keeping her secret, even after she left him, even during the Frog mission. He didn't realize until it was almost too late how eerily similar her behavior over Davidson and Le Grenuoille had been. She'd always drank, usually no more than he did, but she'd started heavily drinking again, as well as not sleeping, mood changes, crying…When he'd seen the bottle of sleeping pills that night in her house, he wasn't taking chances. He didn't know if she intended on a repeat performance, but he sure didn't. He began to do everything in his power to spend time with her and, if he absolutely couldn't be there, he had Matt, Cynthia, or Shelby report back to him. They'd finally gotten over Le Grenuoille, gotten to a spot where he felt more secure, sure that she would be all right, and then Davidson had gotten paroled. The facts that Jenny had known for a week and hadn't told him or that he hadn't gotten informed in the first place didn't matter at the moment. What did was that she was in trouble yet again and, whether she liked it or not, when she was in trouble, he was always going to try his hardest to protect her, because, whether he liked it or not, he still loved her.

* * *

"Grilled cheese, coffee, and…" Tony took a whiff of the air as he walked into the kitchen. "Cookies…Peanut butter?"

Shelby half-smiled at him, letting herself relax slightly. "Yeah." She noticed how tired he appeared, almost as tired as she felt. "Coffee?"

"God, yes. Thank you." She poured him a mug, fixing it the way he liked, and handed it to him, noticing the pictures. "Are those…"

He nodded, keeping them turned where she couldn't see them. He, of course, knew that she'd seen the bedroom already, but it was his subtle way of trying to protect her. "Did he get home?"

"Yeah, a few hours ago. Broke up with the bitch, we talked for a few minutes, and he's been with Jenny ever since. I thought about going home or seeing if you guys needed anything, but I think I'm going to stay here in case they need anything." He studied her as she took the cookies out of the oven, reaching for one, getting swatted for his trouble. "Let them cool."

He let the cookies cool and smiled as she gave him two. "Actually, you know…this is probably the best place you can be right now. Cynthia wants to help, so she can probably go run wherever for us. Your brother needs backup." He finally asked. "How's Jenny?"

"Well, when we got here, she went to lie down, but she wasn't sleeping. I don't know. I didn't go check on her after Jethro got here. I didn't…" She hadn't wanted to intrude.

He nodded, seeing the bruising on her arm, knowing it hadn't been there before. "Are you okay?"

She followed his gaze. "Yeah. Let's just say Hollis and I had a difference of opinion." He got up and got a cool wet washcloth, wrapping it around her arm, making her sit, taking care of the sandwiches himself.

"That woman made some of my dates look normal." Tony shook his head. "Gibbs should have broken up with her long ago."

"Is that right, DiNozzo?"

Tony involuntarily braced himself for the slap to the head he was sure was coming. "Didn't know you were standing right there, boss." He shot Shelby a look like 'why didn't you tell me'.

"Obviously not." Shelby took the mug out of his hand, refilling it. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. I made sandwiches and cookies." She noticed something on her brother's face. "You care if I go work on the boat?"

"You know I don't." Shelby started to walk out. " Shelby?" She turned back around. "Thank you." She nodded, leaving the room.

"Uh, boss…" Tony began.

"Forget it, DiNozzo. You're right. I should have." He paused, taking a sip of the coffee. "How's Shelby holding up?"

Tony felt privileged, knowing Gibbs trusted him with his baby sister. "Hasn't said much, but that's nothing new." Like Jethro, the quieter Shelby became, the more an observer knew something was wrong. "She's going to stay here, in case you guys need anything."

Gibbs nodded. "How much did she tell you? About what's happening?"

Tony hesitated and then simply answered. "Enough." He paused. "I brought the pictures of her house."

Gibbs outstretched his hand, looking over the pictures, his jaw tightening. The scene was simple enough, no cause for alarm, a scene a boyfriend might lay out for a special night with his girlfriend. Taken in context though, it was enough to make Gibbs' blood boil. "I'm going to kill him."

"Boss…" Tony could understand the desire his friend had to protect Jenny, or at least he tried to, but he also realized no good could come of it. "She needs you here." His boss didn't comment and Tony was more than a little afraid that the words were not sinking in. "How is she?"

"Sleeping." He'd held her in his arms until she'd finally fallen asleep, without pills, without alcohol, and he was a little more than relieved. "She's holding in there, but…" He didn't know how much more she could take.

"He's still calling the house." He remembered Ziva answering one of the calls and shouting what he could only assume were obscenities in her native tongue. Needless to say, he hadn't called back. "Is there anything I need to bring her?"

"Depends on how long it lasts." He didn't want her going back home until she was safe. "Who's with Bella?" His voice softened at the mention of his goddaughter.

"The sitter." He always felt sorry for his daughter, being shuffled between his apartment, Shelby's house, daycare, and the sitter almost every day, her maternal grandparents and Jenny's at least one weekend a month.

"Bring her here. It'll do Jen some good. Shelby too." It had taken him awhile to accept the fact that Shelby was so crazy about Bella, to the point that she was the only mother the girl ever knew.

Tony hesitated and then nodded, knowing it would give Jenny something else to focus on and both women loved his little girl. "Okay, boss. I'll go get her." He walked down to the basement, telling Shelby what was going on before leaving. Gibbs watched him go before returning to Jenny's room, watching her sleep, his hand moving some of the red hair out of her face.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

"Mama!" Gibbs watched as his goddaughter ran to his sister, hugging her, Shelby picking her up, holding her gently, kissing her small forehead right below her dark brown hair.

He turned slightly, his hearing picking up enough of Tony's conversation to know that McGee and Ziva were bringing Davidson in for questioning. He watched as Tony kissed Bella's hair, casting a look at Shelby that only the two of them understood, before leaving.

"Nini?" The little girl looked around, pouting as she didn't see Jenny.

"Sleeping. Nap time." She watched as Bella yawned, stretching her arms. "For more than just Nini." She looked at Gibbs. "You coming?"

"Just a minute," he lied smoothly, so smoothly in fact that she didn't catch it, going inside to check on Jenny and then lay Bella down. He waited just long enough to make sure she wasn't coming back outside and then left.

He caught a lucky break when no one was with Davidson in the interrogation room, not even his lawyer. He'd retained his gun easily; after all, he was an NCIS agent. He put his coat over the video camera, watching Davidson's reaction to him just walking into the room.

"Do you remember me?" Jethro asked, sure that he did.

"No." Davidson lied easily, not batting an eyelash.

"What about Jenny Shepherd? Do you remember her?" Gibbs' hands were shaking and he struggled to hide it.

"Who?"

Gibbs pulled out his gun, pointing it squarely in the middle of Davidson's forehead, seeing the fear in his eyes, the same fear that Jenny had had all those years ago and through this week of hell. He remembered her crying herself to sleep, remembered her suicide attempt, he remembered everything.

Ziva David had been watching everything through the mirror and ran into headquarters, catching Tony's attention, pulling him to the side. "What's wrong?" He asked, sensing it was more than her being a 'crazy Isreali chick' as he frequently called her.

"Gibbs."

Tony knew with that one word what had happened and cursed under his breath, beginning to run, dialing his cell phone on the way. "Shelby."

"Tony." Shelby was sitting in on the bed with Jenny, the redhead fully awake now, both worried what Gibbs would do. "He's gone. I went to put Bella down and he's just gone…"

"He's here. In with Davidson. Wake Jenny up," he said in short bursts.

"She's up." Shelby handed the phone over to her friend.

"Tony…." Jenny began, not knowing what to say. "Let me talk to him. Please. Just let me talk to him."

Tony burst into the interrogation room, holding the phone to his boss' ear. "Jethro."

Gibbs swallowed the lump in his throat. "Jen."

"Jethro, don't do it. He's not worth it. Please. Don't. Just come home. I'll be okay…if you just come home. Please come home." He heard a pleading in her voice, almost begging, and his hand shook slightly before he lowered the gun, Tony breathing a sigh of relief. "Jethro?" Jenny asked again, not knowing what was going on.

"Okay, Jenny. Okay." He walked out, Ziva following to drive him home, Tony staying in the interrogation room with Davidson.

Gibbs stood watching for a little while as Shelby poured a mug of coffee for Jen and smiled to himself as Bella put her mug over for some coffee as well, not knowing what it was, just wanting to be like the grownups. His heart warmed as he saw Jenny smile as well, her first real smile in awhile. Shelby poured her a little milk in her sippy cup, kissing into the dark brown hair.

"T'ank you!" Bella said proudly after being prompted a little.

"You're welcome, baby." Shelby watched as the little girl ate her cookie and then turned her attention to Jen. "Are you sure you don't want something to eat? I can make you something else…"

Jenny shook her head. "I'm not hungry." She studied Shelby, knowing she'd gone to the trouble of making the food in hopes that she'd eat. "But thank you. Really. For everything."

"He'll be okay."

Jenny nodded, Bella struggling to get down from her chair. "I know. I just…I'll feel better when he's home."

The little girl toddled over to where he was standing, lifting her arms. "Bubba, up, Bubba."

He picked her up, hugging her, carrying her into the room with the women. "Jethro…" Jenny spoke first, her eyes connecting with his.

"Bella, sweetie, let's go wash our hands and face." Shelby transferred the little girl from Jethro's arms to her own, leaving the room for privacy.

"I didn't shoot him." Jethro couldn't think of what to start with, so he said whatever came to his mind.

"That's good." Jenny got up, pouring a mug of coffee, handing it to him. "What the hell were you thinking?" He started to say something and stopped. "It was going to 'help' me for you to kill him in NCIS custody? To have you in jail? How would that have helped anyone?"

"I wasn't thinking. I just…" He stopped himself. "I wasn't thinking."

"Damned right, you weren't." She crossed her arms and then uncrossed them briefly, tucking some hair behind her ear, then crossing them again. "I'm not ready to lose you, okay? Not by some death wish you seem to have, not by you going on a margarita safari, and sure as hell not because of me…"

He moved to sit, bringing her to sit beside him, holding her hand. "Haven't you learned, after all this, that it's not your fault? Honey, none of this is your fault. None of it. And I'm not ready to lose you either." He touched her cheek gently. "Whatever you think, you're still my partner."

She smiled, nodding, not moving his hand. "I know."

"If I bring you a sandwich, will you eat it?" He asked, changing the subject.

She nodded. "Yeah. Thanks." He got up and got her a grilled cheese sandwich, cutting it in half diagonally and then warming it slightly before bringing it to her. "Eat." He watched her to make sure she did.

"Shelby told me you broke up with Hollis," Jenny said, watching his eyes. "I…Would it be out of line if I couldn't say I was sorry?"

He laughed. "No. I'm not really sorry myself. As DiNozzo said, I should have done it long ago."

She smiled again, doing his heart a world of good. "He really said that?" He nodded, talking with her, relaxing slightly.

Shelby juggled groceries, pizza, and Bella at the door, not quite able to reach her keys until Tony pulled up, using his key to let her into the house, then taking his daughter, needing one of her tiny hugs to make him feel better. "How's Jen?"

"A lot better. I figured they didn't need us anymore and it's getting late…" A lot later now that she'd run by the restaurant and grocery store. She put the pizza on the counter and then put the groceries away.

Bella laid her head on her father's shoulder, fighting hard to keep her eyes open, him kissing her forehead and her giving a baby kiss to his cheek. Shelby got paper plates out and some napkins, cutting one of the pieces of pizza into small bites, putting two more pieces on each of the other plates, Tony moving the plates to the table as Shelby got cups down for sodas and apple juice, the family falling together to eat silently, questions on Shelby's mind, but nothing she wanted to discuss in front of the little girl. Bella was asleep before they finished eating so Shelby carried her to her room, changing her into a pair of pajamas and putting her to bed, knowing a bath could wait until morning.

"She's really exhausted," Tony said, looking that way himself.

"I think we all are. I've lost track of what day it is." Shelby admitted, putting the rest of the pizza in the refrigerator as Tony threw the plates away and put the cups in the dishwasher. "What happened after Jethro left?"

"Davidson confessed. Well, wet his pants and then confessed."

"Will it hold up? After Jethro…"

He nodded. "We'll say the camera malfunctioned. There's no proof that he did anything. It's the word of two NCIS agents, and Ziva, against a known rapist…I don't know how long he'll go away for, but at least he's going back inside."

"Well, thank God for that." Shelby closed her eyes briefly and then opened them again just in time to see him try to stifle a yawn. "Why don't you sleep here tonight?"

"I thought you'd never ask," Tony said, smiling.

"C'mon." She led him to her room, not bothering to shower much less undress, just remove her shoes, laying down on half the bed, him laying down on the other half, settling down together and falling asleep soon after their heads hit the pillows.


End file.
